I live in Richmond, Indiana I have 3 children (ages 35, 30, 15) & 4 grandchildren (ages 12, 7, 4, 18mo.) And....I just became the proud mama of 3 love birds. Their names are Romeo, Juliet and Prince Charming. I love them!
It's so very nice to share with others my love for all birds.
Have a good weekend,
Lady M

Hi,

I have five cockatiels, the process of an accidental family! I had no idea about reproduction and was very green. After over a year and a half of mom and dad courting and absolutley nothing happening I did not think much about the four eggs she laid. I thought one of them had to be sterile. That's why I let them play.

I went online and learned what I could and then candled the eggs and they all looked like duds but I knew not to remove them for 21 days. (Or she would keep laying. They can count!)

Then they hatched! One little baby died. I was so sad. The other three lived but not without turning me gray in the process. It was quite an ordeal. I think I spent more time at the animal clinic than at home.

Mom decided that after four weeks she was through with being mom. Dad and mom had always had a very strange relationship, he being the bully so I was afraid to let them be together...since the tables had turned right before egg laying and she went for him if he got to close to her like white on rice. High tension! Hey, it's not suppose to be like this...

But when mom refused feedings I let dad in (after I removed her) with baited breath. Much to my surprise he was gentle and kind and took to his babies like an endearing daddy. He was wonderful. Between him and I they managed to survive. It was a great experience in ways but then in others just numbing. Handfeeding is very frightening to a newbie like myself. It's just to easy to kill a little baby if you are not doing the process correctly. I studied diagrams and prayed before each feeding.

The youngest and smallest had a seizure while I was holding it but it did not dawn on me right away what it was. It was subtle. Then the second time about four minutes later the light bulb went on. (I have worked with people who had subtle seziures and I saw the similarities). Into the clinic we raced.

The vet told me because the bird was five weeks old and ready to wean that I should forget about handfeeding (it would be impossible) and make the bird as comfy as I could. Ouch. I left very distressed. I also decided to put what she aid aside and get a hand feeding formula on the way home and try.

Spike was so weak he did not resist but seemed to understand I was helping. I put him in a cage next to his brothers and sister. He was very weak but loved to perch on a stuffed monkey (still his favorite). After awhile he wanted to perch higher but I was reluctant. In time as he got stronger I put in a seed cup and raised it up periodically as he grew stronger. I was so proud the first night he stayed on it all night! He just got progressively better and to this day rules the roost! RULES the roost!

But two weeks after Spike had his seizure Nikki had his and it was very obvious. He had weaned though it was a 12 week stint before he actually decided to. Sometimes it takes that long, each bird is different. My little female was quite independent and weaned at 8 weeks without problems in that area...but did manage to fly into a book cabinet and come away with ruptureded air sacs!

Yes, back to the clinic. Nikki went to the clinic too and all the babies had calcium deficiencies. The hand feeding and other supplementation helped that. Be Be still has her ruptured air sacs and we deflate her 2x a month. Something again I was told I could not do but do and easily. It is not a painful situation it just can get uncomfy. She looks more like an owl than a cockatiel. But after deflation she looks like a beautiful cockatiel.

Although the company has been closed down they did help me save my birds. They were called Pet Medicine Chest and they made organic products for animals that were first rate. I would have suffered losses without them. I miss them dearly.

Another very good resource is Alicia McWatter's. She unfortunately died a few years ago a very young woman due to breast cancer. But she left behind a wonderful book about avian health called "A Guide to a Naturally Healthy Bird". (Less than $10.00) She also has her files online and they are a very interesting read. I highly reconmmend them.

We do mostly organics here. Avian Naturals is a very good company and I have been using their products for years.

All the birds are doing well now. I have to keep them separated (well, they all want their own cages anyway, they made that perfectly clear) but I mean separated when they are out. We have to do shifts daily. Girls out and then boys but because Spike does not get along with dad or Nikki he has to be let out alone.

I have a nice outside the cage full length perch the boys take turns using if they want to sit close to mom. For some reason their sister does not interest them much. She is a cinnamon and all the others are grays. I often wonder if that makes a difference.

I used to see this same type of behavior in kittens. If there were several kitties and some were, say, striped and the others black and white the ones that were striped slept together and the ones that were black and white slept together.

O.k., back to birds. I have lots of information if anyone is interested and you can reach me at nlbeeman@hotmail.com. I do not sell anything bird related or am affiliated with anyone I recommend. I recommend companies soley on their ability to provide quality, healthy products and excellent customer service.

I find there is a lot of crap out there and if you are not somewhat educated about healthy choices than that affects your feathered friend.

Many Continued Blessings,
Life Run By Cockatiels~
Nora

well glad to see this area I am from a small town in mo. we
have 4 bird 1 quaker 1 gray 1 amazon and 1 blue and gold soon to get another gray baby
we love and enjoy our guy and a friend of mind take in unwanted bird she has several that was not in good home we make our our bird toys and sell them here on ebay be sure to check us out it is called busy_beaks bird toy
glad to see a are to chat with other bird owners
you can see photos of our guys in my auctions we call them our toy testers
http://stores.ebay.com/BUSY-BEAKS-BIRD-TOYS,

Hi bird lovers! I live in Georgetown, KY, and I have 23 birds. I have 2 cockatiels, 5 parakeets, 16 assorted finches. I have 2 society finches, 2 gouldian finches, 2 cordon blues, 2 orange cheek waxbills and 8 zebra finches. I rescued my first bird, Crackerjack, a cockatiel, from an animal shelter almost 1 year ago. Now I have a "bird room" which now includes an aviary that my hubby drove almost 2 hours to pick up. (he loves the birds almost as much as I do) I would love to find a place to chat online about birds with other bird lovers like myself. Someplace easy to find and navigate. I'm not sure how I wound up here! Anyway, I enjoyed reading everyone's postings and if anyone has a place they go chat online, let me know! Thanks!

Hello I have a beautiful baby Senegal Parrot that is just learning how to talk. He was a rescue from a hoarder and he still has problems with loud sounds but he is getting better.

Hi. My name is Tammy. I have two birds, an Alexandrine Parakeet and a Cherry-headed Conure. I have just begun offering bird sitting and training services and acting as an exotic bird refuge in Bellefonte, PA.

I also design, make and sell bird toys in my ebay store http://stores.ebay.com/PICKY-BIRD-TOYS and a portion of all sales goes towards future operating expenses of the refuge (cages, food, vet bills, toys, etc.). I hope in three years to be selling my toys across the country in pet stores.

My Conure used to be so gentle until I got my Alexandrine. Then when I began bird-sitting a Dusky Conure, he got even worse. He's turned into a little stinker. Still very loving to me, but he bites me harder now. He's definitely letting me know he's not happy I got more birds. He's gonna have to get used to it though :).

I am looking to adopt a Moluccan Cockatoo. If anyone knows of one that needs a home, please let me know. Thanks.

Hi we live in ny we have Pearl a blue and gold and Mary a cockatoo.Pearl loves to play and get into things whatever I'm doing she thinks she can do her favorite thing is to splash around in the bath with me.Mary is my love bug loves to cuddle and lays eggs for me she thinks I'm her mate.We also have two dogs and two cats.Bob my cat just had surgery for uti blockage yesterday allis fine Love them all Fran